Two Penang abandoned housing projects revived

GEORGE TOWN, Tues: Two abandoned housing projects in the state, one of them in Kepala Batas, will be revived, following the signing of a MoU between UDA Holdings Bhd's subsidiary, UDA Land (North) Sdn Bhd, and Koperasi Serbaguna Jelutong Pulau Pinang Berhad (KSJPP) today.

UDA Holdings managing director Datuk Jaafar Abu Hassan said the two projects were Taman Orkid in Pongsu Seribu, Kepala Batas, and Mengkuang Heights near Seberang Jaya. They have been abandoned since 2005. The units were expected to be completed within 18 months.

Taman Orkid comprised 71 units of single-storey bungalows, while 61 single-storey units and 19 one-and-a-half storey bungalows will be developed at Mengkuang Heights. Both projects were about 25 per cent and 65 per cent completed respectively.

The Taman Orkid houses were sold at between RM119,000 and RM268,000 each while the Mengkuang Heights units were priced from RM180,000 to RM316,000. The two projects were developed by Syarikat Sri Jeluda Sdn Bhd in 2003 but were abandoned two years later.

State Housing Committee chairman Syed Amerruddin Datuk Syed Ahmad praised UDA Holdings for their willingness to revive the projects.

"We appreciate that UDA Holdings has decided not to increase the costs of the units which were earlier sold," he said. “There are still two abandoned projects in the state and are in the process of being revived.”

--NST